Housemarque’s next roguelike can’t come soon enough
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During Wednesday’s State of Play showcase, developer Housemarque and Sony Interactive Entertainment showed off an extended look at next year’s Saros. Like the studio’s previous game Returnal, it will be a bullet hell roguelike, and it arrives on March 20, 2026, for PlayStation 5.
The new trailer shows player character Arjun Devraj — played by actor Rahul Kohli — facing off against a variety of mechanical and frightening enemies on the planet Carcosa. He’ll have a Soltari Shield ability, which defends Arjun and absorbs enemy projectiles (life-saving in a bullet hell game). His Second Chance ability will allow him to revive after his first death, allowing players’ runs to not be cut too short. The DualSense’s adaptive triggers allow for modified gunplay and “eclipse-driven weaponry.”
Housemarque described Saros as the “ultimate evolution of the Housemarque gameplay-first experience” on the PlayStation Blog when it was announced. Part of that evolution is making the game easier, in a way. Housemarque notes a major difference between Returnal and Saros will be Arjun’s permanent upgrades between runs. Players will be able to strengthen Arjun’s suit and weapons, meaning Saros may end up being more approachable than the studio’s previous roguelike.
Returnal put players under the helmet of Selene, an astronaut stranded on a hostile alien world. It came out early in the PlayStation 5’s launch cycle, and truly felt “next gen” with its use of the DualSense controller’s haptic feedback and ray tracing effects. A free Ascension update added a co-op mode and the endless Tower of Sisyphus mode in 2022.
Saros is due March 20, 2026, on PS5.
